to be continued....

June 15th and 16th, 2009 ( Music: Brooke Fraser; Album: Albertine)

"What to do when we know we have it all?"

I always find myself getting upset in times where God is not showing me huge things! I like to call those times when He is showing me huge things, "Spiritual Mountaintop Times." I struggle to find joy in much of anything on a typical day of this earth. On these average days, I desire for those times when I sense the presence of God so closely that I either cry or smile so largely that my jaw may break. The times spent in the Lord's presence are so peaceful.

Over the past year I have been slowly learning that you will not always be on a spiritual high in life. There are times where each day blends together and you must perform typical daily tasks. This morning I was reminded of something I heard a while ago, in the book of 2 Peter.

Simon Peter speaks of this truth, "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who call us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promise, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires."

What does it mean or look like to lay down our lives and pick up faith? Jesus laid his life down for 33 years. 1 John 3:16 states, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers." We ought also to lay our lives down for Christ and grow with Him. When we lie our lives down for Christ we escape the corruption in the world and we find that we belong to truth.

Knowing this, that his divine power has given us everything we need, what should we do in our everyday life? For myself, I become lazy and unproductive in the times when every day is similar to every other day. I imagine this creates in most Christ followers the result of becoming luke warm with their faith. We begin to lose the voice of the Spirit in the midst of everyday life. I say, "Yes, I will pray for that." Yet I seemed to have either not gotten around to doing it or gave a half hearted, non-believing prayer. There needs to be a balance in our lives to find things to do in everyday life concerning our faith in Christ.

I am so happy to have stumbled upon the book of 2 Peter again in a time where I have become somewhat luke warm.

2 Peter 1:5-9 "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins."

Adding to my faith.